The Spatial Reconstruction of Mosuo Households and Its Cultural Logic in Lugu Lake
Based on ethnographic fieldwork in two Mosuo villages near Lugu Lake, this article examines the spatial reconstruction of Mosuo "family houses" (jiawu) amid social change and the intrusion of tourism economy, along with its underlying cultural logic. The study finds that changes in the structure and layout of Mosuo houses show an overall pattern of simplified main structures and expanded private spaces. Tourism has generated diverse house-space types—"residential-only," "dual residential-commercial," and "shared commercial-residential"—significantly increasing spatial openness. Behind this diversity lies a contest between traditional Mosuo "house-based" values and imported "individual-based" notions, alongside negotiation between modern economic forces and local cultural traditions. While ceding certain spaces, Mosuo people preserve the mother-room as a cultural bottom line, embedding it strategically into tourism activities to reconcile tradition-keeping with development, reflecting the ethnic group's self-adaptation to modernity.
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